Very few athletes even attempt the 400-intermediates double because the two races are usually so close together and they’re just very challenging races.
Eastern sophomore Natalie Dumas not only attempted the double. She won both races. With all-time top-10 times in New Jersey history.
And then anchored the winning 1,600-meter relay team.
Dumas turned in one of the greatest performances in state history Wednesday at the 45th annual Meet of Champions at Pennsauken.
Dumas is South Jersey’s first triple winner at the Meet of Champions in 40 years.
She started out with a historic win in the 400-meter hurdles, winning in 58.98, 7th-fastest in state history, 2nd-fastest in South Jersey history, 3rd-fastest ever by a New Jersey sophomore and 3rd-fastest in meet history.
After a short break, she followed that up with a blazing win in the flat 400, winning in 53.16, also 7th-fastest in state history as well as 2nd-fastest in South Jersey history, 3rd-fastest by a New Jersey sophomore and 3rd-fastest in meet history. She’s the second straight South Jersey sophomore to win the MoC Meet of Champions. Pennsauken’s Sianni Wynn won it last year in 54.56. She won the 100 and 200 this year.
Dumas finished her electrifying triple win with a 52.57 anchor leg on Eastern’s 1,600-meter relay team, which ran 3:49.01. She moved the Vikings up from 5th to 1st with the fastest split in the race. Lomaria Tengbeh, Eva Sprewell and Samantha Osei-Kyei also ran for Eastern, with all four legs under 60 seconds and Osei-Kyei – another sophomore – splitting 56.52.
Other Meet of Champions triple winners in South Jersey history include Willingboro’s Michelle Glover in 1980 [100, 200, 400-meter relay], teammate Carol Lewis in 1980 and 1981 [hurdles, long jump, 400-meter relay] and Pemberton’s Lillian Rivera in 1984 [shot, discus, javelin]
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 